It's now.

"The Hopis consider running a form of prayer; they offer every step as a sacrifice to a loved one and in return ask the Great Spirit to match their strength with some of His own." -Christopher MacDougall, author of Born to Run

And it begins again.  18 weeks of raising funds.  18 weeks of training.  18 weeks of getting closer to a cure by raising at least $20,000 for cancer research.   18 weeks of many, many steps offered in honor of Molly, Mary, and John.

Monday was Day 1 of the training plan for the 2012 Boston Marathon.  I love having a plan.  A plan means motivation and direction.  It means checking off the days and the workouts and know that the training will prepare me to run 26.2 miles in April.   I like the feeling of completing longer and longer runs, in turn feeling stronger (and sometimes even a little faster).  Putting together a schedule forces me to think about my personal goals and what I hope to acheive: for the marathon, for raising money for cancer research at Dana-Farber, for my own personal well-being through running.

I also feel a stronger sense of purpose when the time for kicking off my fundraising for Dana-Farber begins.  Over the past couple of years, given the circumstances that have surrounded my family, I've become more and more committed to helping to find a cure for cancer.  This time of year is when I get to jump in and do what I can to advance the research.   I've again set my goal at $20,000 but hope to exceed that goal.  The network of people who have supported this cause and our family has grown tremendously over the past couple of years, and it is because of this generous network that I can continue these efforts.  I am planning some ways to honor and remember your family and friends who have been affected by cancer, and to help spread the "Be good.  Be strong." mantra that has become the rallying cry of these efforts. Stayed tuned for details on that....coming soon!

While the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge website keeps me accountable in terms of reaching my fundraising goals, I am also going to making an effort to be accountable in my running. I am going to (try to) post my weekly workouts so if (and likely when) I feel like slacking, I will have to write it out.  This may be of interest to some of you, maybe none of you, but knowing that it is "out there" means I am more likely to get it done.  This will likely include weather updates, since I can't seem to stop obsessing about winter.  I'll track my progress in reaching both of my goals.  Join me for some runs...mock me for slacking...offer advice.  Whatever it takes, I ask you to come along for the ride and provide support!

And so the time is now.  Training is kicking off, and so is the challenge of raising vital funds for cancer research.  Given the statistics, we will all benefit either directly or through someone in our families.  It's a challenge bigger than a marathon, and one that will continue long after April 16, 2012 has come and gone.  But it is up to us all to rise to the challenge.  And to start now so someday this Marathon Challenge will only have to provide care and support to cancer survivors...because that will be the only outcome after a cancer diagnosis.  No other options.  None.

I've said before that cancer can make you feel helpless and when I first signed up to run for Dana-Farber, it was during a time when I felt like there was nothing else I could do.  There are a lot of times when I still feel that way, but I know that this effort by the DFMC is a big something, and it is making a difference.  Please consider supporting Dana-Farber with a gift in honor of the the marathon team.

Click here to make a gift.

Be good.  Be strong.